The party was formed in January 1991 after the merger of the
CPN (Maoist Centre) to form the Nepal Communist Party on 17 May 2018 but the new party was dissolved and CPN (UML) was revived by a Supreme Court decision on 8 March 2021.[11][12] The party claimed to have 855,000 members as of December 2021 making them the largest party in Nepal by membership which later fell down to 550,000 in October 2023.[13][14]
no-confidence motion in September 1995. The party was back in the government in March 1997, after supporting the Lokendra Bahadur Chand-led Rastriya Prajatantra Party government. Following dissension in the RPP, Lokendra Bahadur Chand resigned and CPN (UML) returned to the opposition.[16][15]
The party faced its first split in March 1998, after disagreements about a
1999 elections, the party won 70 of 205 seats and was the second-largest party in the House of Representatives.[16]
Reunification and direct rule, 2002–2006
Most members of the
Chandra Prakash Mainali decided to restructure the party.[15] The party's seventh general convention was held in Janakpur on February 1–6, 2003. The convention decided to abolish the post of party chair, vacant after the death of Man Mohan Adhikari and Madhav Kumar Nepal
was unanimously reelected as general secretary of the party.
Ishwor Pokhrel general secretary by the eighth general convention in Butwal
in February 2009.
In early May 2009, the CPN (UML) joined several other parties in leaving Dahal's
UCPN (Maoist).[24] He resigned in August after he failed to reach a consensus with the other parties on drafting a new constitution and the peace process.[24] The party joined the next government, led by Baburam Bhattarai, on 28 August 2011.[25] In November 2012, Ashok Kumar Rai broke away from the party along with other indigenous leaders and formed the Federal Socialist Party claiming that the party failed to address their concerns during the discussions for promulgation of the constitution.[26]
2nd Constituent Assembly, 2013–2017
Following Bhattarai's dissolution of the
Khadga Prasad Oli became party chair after he defeated Madhav Kumar Nepal in the party's ninth general convention.[8]
The new constitution was delivered by the coalition government on 20 September 2015.
CPN (Maoist Centre), and by extension the merger itself, was void ab initio, as the name was already allotted to a party led by Rishiram Kattel, and that the NCP stood "dismissed".[47] The Election Commission on 9 March 2021 formally split the party and the CPN (UML) was revived.[12] Four members of the House of Representatives and one member of the National Assembly for CPN (Maoist Centre) also defected to CPN (UML) during the split but were dismissed as parliamentarians following their defection.[48]
no-confidence motion on 9 May 2021 but was reappointed as prime minister four days later after the opposition failed to prove a majority.[49] Chief minister of Gandaki, Prithvi Subba Gurung resigned before a no-confidence motion and chief Minister of Lumbini, Shankar Pokharel also lost a no-confidence motion but were similarly reappointed after the opposition failed to prove their majority.[50][51][52][53]
A cabinet meeting chaired by prime minister and party chairman KP Sharma Oli recommended the president to dissolve the House of Representatives on 22 May 2021 after members of his party led by former prime ministers Madhav Kumar Nepal and Jhala Nath Khanal supported Nepali Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba as the next prime minister.[54] The Supreme Court reinstated the House of Representatives on 12 July 2021 and Oli resigned from his post the next day and Deuba was appointed prime minister.[55][56] Twenty-two members of the CPN (UML) voted for Deuba during his confidence vote defying the party whip.[57]
The party also lost its government in
no-confidence motion and Pokharel resigning.[58][59] Province 1 chief minister, Sher Dhan Rai and Bagmati chief minister Dormani Paudel were replaced in August of that year after losing support within their parliamentary party. They were replaced by Bhim Acharya and Asta Laxmi Shakya respectively who were elected by the parliamentary party.[60][61]
Opposition and splits, 2021–2022
Main article:
2021 split in Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist)
On 25 August 2021, former prime ministers
CPN (Unified Socialist).[62] Following the split, the party lost its majority in Bagmati and Province 1 and Shakya and Acharya resigned following which the party was in opposition in all seven provinces.[63][64]
In the 2022 local elections, 11,929 councillors were elected from the party including 206 mayors and rural chairs. The party lost their mayoral seats in Kathmandu and Pokhara and failed to win the mayoral elections in any of the six metropolitan cities in the country.
2nd Federal Parliament (2022–present)
The party formed electoral pacts with
CPN (Maoist Centre) in 2021 also decided to contest the election as independents following dissatisfaction with the electoral pact with People's Socialist Party in Madhesh. The three leaders were later supported by the Democratic Left Alliance during the elections.[76][77] Later leaders including Prabhu Sah and Ram Bir Manandhar formed Aam Janata Party.[78][79]
election symbol of CPN (UML) is the sun which is also present in the party logo.[86] The hammer and sickle, a common symbol of communism, is also used in the party flag and logo. The party constitution determines that a golden hammer and sickle inside a red sun is the party's logo.[87]
Organisation
Central organisation
The National Convention is the supreme body of CPN (UML) and it is organized every five years by the party's Central Committee. The national convention elects the central secretariat and the central committee of the party. The convention also discusses and approves political documents, organisational proposals and amendments to the party constitution.[87]
The Central Committee of the party is the highest decision-making body within general conventions and is responsible to the national convention. The National Convention elects a Central Secretariat consisting of a chair, a senior vice-chair, six vice-chairs, one general secretary, three deputy general secretaries and seven secretaries. The Central Secretariat along with other elected members make up the 301-member Central Committee of the party. The chairs of the seven provincial committees of the party are also ex-officio members of the Central Committee. One-third of the committee is also required to be female. The Central Committee also elects a 99-member
When the Central Committee is not in session the Politburo is the highest decision-making body, the Standing Committee follows the Politburo in hierarchy and the Central Secretariat follows the Standing Committee. The National Convention also elects a Central Disciplinary Commission, a Central Accounts Commission and a Central Electoral Commission. A Central Advisory Council can also be formed by the Central Committee if needed.[87]
Provincial and local organisation
Party committees exist at the
district, local, ward and neighborhood level. In addition to this the party has a separate special committee in the Kathmandu Valley which is in the same level as the provincial committees in the party. The provincial committee holds a provincial convention every four years and the rest of the committees hold a convention every three years except for neighborhood committees which hold a convention every two years. The convention elects the leadership and members of the committee which is the supreme decision-making body in between conventions. The party also has organisational committees for areas where the party does not have presence yet.[87]
Electoral performance
Legislative elections
See also:
Constituent Assembly of Nepal
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org